The NFL MVP award, or any MVP award for this matter, is always something of a debate. I’m not even talking about debating over who is more deserved of the award based on their play, but I’m talking about the raging discussion over what does MVP actually mean.
Because the term MVP stands for Most Valuable Player and because it is only given to one player based on his performance, the term has become ambiguous throughout the sporting society.
Some people like to point to the word “valuable” and say that MVP should go to the player who is worth the most wins, so long as his team is a winner and/or a post-season participant.
Others point out that if you are going to give an award to player solely based on his on-field performance, then his team should not factor in the equation because this is an individual award; whereas winning divisions, conferences and championships are team awards.
Then there are those who say that you don’t even have to separate the two previous philosophies. That is to say, that the best player in the league is going to account for as of his team’s success whether he plays on a good team or a bad one.
Well, for the purposes of the NFL MVP Power Rankings, I am taking the third and last approach. The player who wins the MVP should be the player who is the best, and that person by definition of being the best will be worth the most success to his team.
1. Randy Moss – Randy Moss is the clear favorite for MVP in my mind. With all due respect, to Tom Brady, he’s chunking the ball up in the air and Randy Moss is pulling it down. Moreover, it’s not considered efficient quarterbacking when you’re just throwing the ball into double coverage and letting the best receiver in the game jump up and catch it. Moss has 56 catches, 924 yards, and 12 touchdowns through 9 games. Some of the games top wide receivers won’t have numbers like that at season’s end. Not to mention that Moss is on pace to catch 100 balls, go for 1600+ yards and catch over 20 touchdowns. If he isn’t the MVP, there is something very fishy going on…
2. Adrian Peterson – This young man is probably the first rookie that I have considered for MVP since I have been watching football. He is single handedly destroying defenses both on the ground and through the air. He has 1,036 yards off of a 6.6 yards per rush average and has nine total touchdowns. Those stats are only through eight games. That’s half a season, and if he were to stop playing now he would win rookie of the year. His 296-yard performance that deemed him the NFL’s greatest single-game running back ever has him on his way to challenging Moss for the MVP.
3. Peyton Manning – Just another season on pace for 4,000+ passing yards and 25+ touchdowns. He has a 100+ quarterback rating, and with his 14 touchdowns, he has only thrown four interceptions. He is a perennial MVP candidate every season and the best quarterback in the game.
4. Braylon Edwards – Braylon is no Randy Moss (yet), but he is having one heck of a Moss like season. In fact, he averages more yards per catch (17.5) than Moss himself. He is also only three touchdowns back of Moss with one less game played. Edwards is changing the way the NFL views the Browns, and at 5-3 through Week 9, he is the team’s most valuable player.
5. Tom Brady – This is his best season ever, and while it may seem like a slap in the face to put him at #5, he is still probably the “mainstream” favorite to win the MVP award. And he probably will, considering that he is on pace to throw for 4,775 yards, 59 touchdowns and only 7 interceptions. His 131.8 quarterback rating would destroy previous records if he were to finish anywhere close to that. Nevertheless, as I said before, Moss is the reason for all of this; however, Moss’ presence has proven that Brady is in Peyton’s league.
